7. You noticed that too, eh?

24. I've almost never done user name searches here, but I'm almost ready to, so that I can see which

DU -ers have been proclaiming the absurd worthlessness of religion and are now pitching a hissy fit over that minister who is WRONG about LGBTQ's rights to be who they are. Churches pay people to think what they think, that makes them ir-relevant, except to those who don't mind listening to prejudice. LGBTQ should have their say loud and clear and then I hope it becomes the Ignore that it deserves, because more people will be listening to the poet, Blanco.

19. Yes!

61. The clergy guy is out because people were rightfully pissed. And that's a good thing.

In a statement, a spokesperson for the Presidential Inaugural Committee said the committee was "not aware of Pastor Giglio’s past comments at the time of his selection and they don’t reflect our desire to celebrate the strength and diversity of our country at this Inaugural."

"Pastor Giglio was asked to deliver the benediction in large part for his leadership in combating human trafficking around the world. As we now work to select someone to deliver the benediction, we will ensure their beliefs reflect this administration’s vision of inclusion and acceptance for all Americans," said spokesperson Addie Whisenant.

9. Rest up a bit, there is much more work to do! Bravo to you!

10. You do the best job, too.

I'm glad you're doing so much of the defending here, because you do it very well. I'm pretty insanely glad, too. There are very few people in politics you can really admire. Even fewer of the really successful ones. Of all all the presidents I've been alive for, President Obama is my personal favorite. I don't count President Kennedy because I was not quite 11 when he was elected.

He’s also a serial misleader on the drone program. “There hasn’t been a single collateral death because of the exceptional proficiency, precision of the capabilities we’ve been able to develop,” Brennan said in June 2011. But as Micah Zenko points out in Foreign Policy, there have been many “public reports — from Pakistani and Yemeni reporters and anonymous administration officials — of civilians killed by U.S. drone strikes.”

~snip~

In 2008, as the debate over telecom immunity raged, Brennan said: “I do believe strongly that they should be granted that immunity, because they were told to do so by the appropriate authorities that were operating in a legal context, and so I think that’s important.” This line of reasoning, later implemented into the law, shields corporate communication companies from lawsuits from customers who may have been unlawfully spied on.

Brennan is opposed to waterboarding, the most infamous torture tactic of the Bush years. But on other aspects of the torture program, he’s more supportive. “A lot of information… has come out from these interrogation procedures that the agency has in fact used against the real hard-core terrorists. It has saved lives,” he said in 2007, while he was a CIA aide. The New Yorker’s Jane Mayer described Brennan as a “supporter” of the CIA’s torture program.

~snip~

In 2005, Brennan described extraordinary rendition as “an absolutely vital tool” that “without a doubt has been very successful as far as producing intelligence that has saved lives.” What Brennan left out is that rendition often delivered people to brutal regimes where they were tortured at the behest of the U.S. And, while it certainly nabbed extremists trying to attack the U.S., innocent people were also caught up in the operation. Maher Arar is the most visible face of how the rendition program went wrong: a dual Syrian and Canadian citizen, Arar was detained by the U.S. in 2002 and then deported to Syria where he was tortured on suspicion of being a member of Al Qaeda. Turns out he was nothing of the sort, and the Canadian government has since apologized to Arar.

A U.S. drone attack has killed eight people in the Pakistani region of North Waziristan. Pakistani officials say the dead are suspected militants, including an al-Qaeda operative. Three people were injured. The attack follows another strike in Pakistan that killed up to 18 people on Sunday.

McChrystal, Ex-Commander of U.S. Forces in Afghanistan, Questions Drone Warfare

Speaking to Reuters, the former commander of U.S. troops in Afghanistan, retired General Stanley McChrystal, became one of the highest-ranking former military officials to publicly question the drone attacks, saying: "The resentment created by American use of unmanned strikes ... is much greater than the average American appreciates. They are hated on a visceral level, even by people who’ve never seen one or seen the effects of one."

Former Adviser: Obama "As Ruthless and Indifferent to the Rule of Law" as Bush

A former adviser to Obama on security issues has forcefully come out against drone warfare, saying it is encouraging arms proliferation worldwide while causing unknown civilian casualties. Writing in this month’s issue of International Affairs, La Salle University’s Michael Boyle, an adviser on the Obama campaign’s counterterrorism expert group in 2007 and 2008, writes: " has been just as ruthless and indifferent to the rule of law as his predecessor. ... The consequences can be seen in the targeting of mosques or funeral processions that kill non-combatants and tear at the social fabric of the regions where they occur. No one really knows the number of deaths caused by drones in these distant, sometimes ungoverned, lands."

A distinguishing feature of the mass public is the limited comprehension of democracy,
along with its attendant logical inconsistencies, and the ease to which one may be susceptible to
its manipulation by elites (Selznick, 1951). “The readiness for manipulation by symbols,
especially those permitting sado-masochistic releases, is characteristic of the mass as a crowd (p.
324). In its defense of democracy, the mass public may take action against its enemies which are
contrary to the democratic principles they are defending. The mass public will dismiss proper
social conduct and established channels of action and resort to the most immediate forms of
response (including force) to gain immediate relief from intolerable situations.

25. There is only great darkness where there is also great light. That awareness may be characterized as

fanaticism and zealotry by those who make assumptions about things they never bother to respect others enough to ask them about, because to do so would be to burst what may be their own self-referential bubbles of delight.

Some of it is fanaticism and zealotry, some of it isn't and some of us are capable of admitting the possibility of either case and some of us aren't.

69. I do not participate in fan clubs, hero worship, or cheerleading.

Nor do I join the two minute hate often reserved for the likes of Nader et al.

Instead I choose to study the alternatives and make a rational decision based on what will provide the best outcome. YMMV.

When the rules allocate resources to people on the basis of ascriptive characteristics, and when the use of those material resources is given by tradition rather than the result of a calculative weighing of alternatives, then economic interactions take place under nonrationalized conditions. When those rules enable people to make precise calculations about alternative uses of those resources, and when they discipline people to use those resources in more rather than less efficient ways on the basis of those calculations, then those rules can be described as "rationalized."

21. babylonsister

He is a man worth fighting for, and defending - but he have to many who hate him - who despise him, and who want him dead... it is a uphill battle who is not over yet.

But, i believe he is worth it - even if he choose sometimes to do things a whole different way than "i" look at the world...

And you are not alone either Babylonsister - many is defending him, and fighting for him - in our own little ways - The important things is never easy to fight for, but worth it - and your president have indeed a fight on his hand - and worth defending, even when it looks dark there in the tunnel..

34. babylonsister

babylonsister

I am that little weird fellow from Norway - a little country in the north of Europe - a small but prosperous country who for the most part is more or less unknown for the rest of the world.. Our nabours Sweden and Denmark - not to say Finland is far more known by others, than Norway... We are most known for our fjords our Viking heritage - even though it is a long time since the Vikings was plundering the rest of the Europe - and for the Nobel Peace Prize - who your current US president won in 2009 - even though many wondered why.. I think one of the reasons was out of a hope that Obama would be a better smarter president than GWB had been..

And yes, we have written with each other many times over the years, and possible get to know a little about each others on the way too..

Well, I have always been fascinated by the americans from I as little.. Even though I was not sure where you all was first.. Oh well, as I grow, I learned little more about you all - I believed I had a grasp on your politic when you managed to elect the worst president in modern time, George Walker Bush jr as your president - for the next 8 year it was a roller coaster of up and downs, twist and turns - and I learned a lot, that I admit, had no clue about was happening in the US... It was a steep learning cure for sure, to get to know little more of the inner working of the US political speaking.. And I guess, I as a foreigner, living on the other side of the pound, also have just bits and parts of the political game in the US... In all I think USA is a confusing country - on the other side you act and speak in a way most people can understand - and then turn around and do the opposite of what is expected...
¨
I have even visited United States - once - even though it was a long time ago, before 9/11 2001, I was just there for 2 weeks, but it was 2 weeks who really made a impact on me for years to come.. Even thought I was just in one single State (Florida) it was impressing what I was able to visit - and specially the visit to Kennedy Space Center was something who as high on my list of places to visit if ever coming to the US.. I have always been interested in your space program, and followed as closely as I was able to, your space shuttle program for almost 30 year.. And it was also long before the TSA state where even little old womans like my foster mother got trouble with - as she had the new passports the americans demanded - and they doesn't had the equipment necessary to proses the passports.. She was not amused being put in a small rom with a lot of others for 4 hours - even though she in the end was allowed access to the US.. To New Orleans and Bourbon Street with the Jazz... (Lucky bastard!) She had a great time there - but she have said, that she would not come back again.. As she put it - the TSA was worse than the old eastern European border guards under the cold war in Bulgaria - At least the guards there was professionals and was polite with the customers (we as visitors to the country).. She had just disdain for the TSA, as she called them just bully's with uniforms..

I think US and the american people need as many allies all over the world as you can get - we are when everything come to it - in the same boat against some horrible forces who want to make 90-95 percent of the population into slaves for big money... And they seen to forgetting the fact, if people get enough they tend to make things ugly for the 1 percent... Something I think americans seen to have forgetting - I suspect you are not learning to much about that in school...

I was even wondering about emigrating to the US in the late 1990s - but for many reasons I was not emigrating to the US... And I guess I did the right thing in the end... The US of the 2000s was kind of horrible compared to the 1990s USA..

28. You ain't nuts, b'sis!

31. I'm glad you do so, and don't give up.

He's a great man, and a real leader.

I need you and the other DUers who have his back. The bashers sometimes get to me, but almost every time they've gone off on something, the situation ends up turning around and his judgement turns out to have been sound. (and no, I'm not saying he's perfect or superhuman)

But he sure has the brains, compassion, courage and integrity by the truckload!

33. i'm with you, sista babylon!

it's a beautiful name, President Barack Hussein Obama.
however, am more discerning these days who i determine worthy of my time and energy to defend our President. some people just enjoy thinking we have chains or strings they can yank....and they are not worth the oxygen or second of my time. btdt and done with them.

37. I do have the President's back against lies and smears.. Thankfully, he and

I just know that the reality of having him as Prez, Michelle as First Lady, and Biden as Vp is very much appreciated by me.

‘Hang tough on guns, Dems. It’s gonna get ugly’

Vice President Joe Biden listens to Annette Nance-Holt as she holds a photo of her son Blair, who was shot and killed while riding a bus from school in 2007, during a meeting in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington, D.C., Jan. 9, 2013. The Vice President, along with Attorney General Eric Holder, met with representatives of victims’ groups and gun safety organizations as part of the Administration’s effort to develop policy proposals in response to the tragedy in Newtown, Conn. Colin Goddard, who was shot four times at Virginia Tech in 2007, is seated second from left. (Official White House Photo by David Lienemann)

42. I guess you were one of the ones that fell in love with Obama during the 2007/8 primaries

(Or even the 2004 DNC keynote speech.)

I don't follow someone just because he's attractive, people have to prove themselves and Obama's proven to be another Clinton (which isn't good because Clinton was a third way, DLC Democrat, nice and charming but just another corporatist. I don't see the logic in liking someone just because you'll enjoy being screwed more than you would with the Republicans.

Oh, and BTW I find it interesting that many Obama fans totally disregard Obama's "harsher than Bush" foreign, surveillance, and immigration policy. It doesn't really matter to you that we continue to kill so many innocent civilians in Afghanistan with drone strikes (more than 2,000 so far), that the NSA under this administration is building a center to conduct even more intense communications spying (internet, cellphone calls, etc...) and will let the NSA spy and track more than a million people through multiple forms of communication, that Obama has continued rendition (that allows the U.S. to torture detainees in other countries, free from U.S. law), and that Obama has been harsher than Bush on Immigration Policy, with record deportations (record family breakups) about 1.5 times more than Bush.

45. He is NOTHING more than a person who was elected to office.

When we started considering a person who garnered more votes than another to be a person who is to be exalted somehow, we lost sight of the reason for DEMOCRATIC governance in the first place.

I am not "insanely" glad to have a single person serving in our "democratically elected" government.

We have 535 people governing us who by virtue of their office are part of the 2% vs the 98% and now tell us how we should live from the time we wake to the time we rest our heads on our pillows.

After their last meeting to "avert" the "fiscal cliff", Pelosi and Boner took separate LIMOUSINES from Point A (The White House) to Point B (The Capitol Building) MINUTES APART. Yet, us LITTLE people are given "car pool lanes" for doing what THEY want us to do. Am I the ONLY person who sees MAJOR THINGS WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE?

Our ELECTED OFFICIALS are PUBLIC SERVANTS, or so the story goes. Yet, they vote their OWN pay raises, fly in PRIVATE jets provided by the US Government via the military, ride in LIMOUSINES, and live better than 98% of us could EVER hope to live.

Fuck 'em ALL. It's THEM who keep us down.

They (the privileged ones) have convinced US that we're being oppressed by the people who bought their offices. Oh, the IRONY.

67. Bwhahaha!

52. I'm out of here.

Dear fellow DU posters, I joined this site during the run up to the Presidential Elections this autumn.
I must point out that even then, when I read some of the threads about Obama's first debate, i was dumbstruck by the posters' ability to rationalise any blunder made by Barack Obama into a clever strategy that critics just weren't smart enough to understand - hell, that supporters themselves weren't smart enough to understand.
This is as close as you can get to unquestioning loyalty.
I let all this slide, then, because I knew who the alternative for president was, and I got caught up in election-month enthusiasm.
The day after the election i was as happy as anybody.
After the hopes raised by Obama during his first campaign were systematically disappointed during his first four years, we should know better.
But it appears that even when the president is firmly in office, members of this site will feel the need to look the other way whenever he fails to live up to the hopes of his own voters. The excuses presented may rotate a bit - the necessities of government, congress won't do it, it's a high pressure job, it's all a grand strategy, you just don't understand, it could be worse - but that is all I hear, excuses, excuses, excuses.
Granted, this president is not nearly as bad as his predecessor, which does not take much, and incomparably better than anyone in the last Republican primaries.
Being better than Bush does not make him the "best thing that ever happened to America" (this very thread).
For over thirty years now, this country has been moving towards a worsening of inequality, monopolistic economy, and, especially recently, a reduction in civil liberties, as well as being a major obstacle to extremely necessary world wide environmental policies.

We do not need a man who continues these same policies and trends, only without republican arrogance, and we don't need a man who tinkers with them but does not change them substantially. We are on the wrong course, and we must not just it slow down until the next republican president, but reverse it.

But most of all, we sure as hell don't need his puppy-dog supporters who've made a habit of finding excuses for every retreat, every compromise, every failure, every unilateral ceasefire. The other side is fighting, and pushing in the wrong direction. We should bloody well start to push in the opposite one.

I've been thinking about leaving this site for some time, but the sickening praise in this circle-jerk thread has finally convinced me.